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Tbilisi Public Transport Allegedly Hacked, Pro-European Messages Played on Payment Machines

On the morning of 24 January, ticket machines for public transport in Tbilisi, including buses and mini-buses, were allegedly hacked and played audio recordings of pro-European messages and songs, echoing the ongoing pro-European rallies and events, as well as well-known statements by Georgian politicians and Georgian Dream officials.

Tbilisi City Hall soon announced that the machines would be shut down ‘due to an alleged cyber-attack’ and that public transport would be free until the technical problem was resolved. By the midday, the machines had been repaired.

One such recording played the Georgian national anthem, followed by the first President Zviad Gamsakhurdia’s words “Long live the independence of Georgia!” from his famous 1991 speech declaring the restoration of the country’s independence. It continued with the late Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania’s iconic statement at the Council of Europe in 1999: “I am Georgian, therefore I am European”. The recording included excerpts from Bidzina Ivanishvili’s pre-election speeches, apologizing for the 2008 war or expressing frustration at difficulties in accessing his money in Swiss banks. It also included the obscene remark made by GD’s Mikheil Kavelashvili when he was a member of the Georgian parliament: “Between you [the opposition] and us, whoever acted in favor of Russia, f* them,” followed by the EU anthem and ending with: “Glory to Ukraine, glory to Georgia, f* Russia”.

Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze alleged a cyber attack and said the investigation would find out who was behind it.

The payment machines in public transport are owned by Bank of Georgia. The machines are technically supported by LTD MS+ and LTD Azri.

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This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)

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